Teresa's Rage
by shadowqueen15
Summary: A little story taking place in a world where Teresa never died. NO ROMANCE
1. Chapter 1

It had been seven years since Teresa killed those bandits; seven years since the battle against Priscilla and the others. Priscilla was killed by Teresa that day, and Irene, Noel, and Sophia were gravely injured. The organization was smart enough to know not to come after Teresa again and, God help them if they tried, Clare.

So the duo had moved to a fairly small village, settling down and acting like a normal family. Clare was fifteen now; she had grown into a beautiful young woman, Teresa was proud to say. The two of them had a stronger relationship than anyone else around them. They rarely ever fought, and they trusted each other. Most importantly, they loved each other unconditionally. Teresa thought of Clare as her own and would do anything for her, even if that meant going through hell or ripping the world in two.

So, naturally, it came as a surprise to Teresa when Clare did what she did.

It was a beautiful and warm Saturday night, and Clare had informed Teresa that she would be going to a friend's house for a while and returning later that night. Hearing this, Teresa smiled and kissed Clare's forehead, telling her to have a good time. Hours passed and Teresa just sat in their house, reading a book.

At roughly nine thirty, Teresa decided to run by the tavern around the corner to grab a quick drink. She rarely drank but when she craved alcohol, she _craved_ it. She threw on slightly nicer clothes and slipped on her shoes, and then walked out the door.

When she arrived at the tavern, what she saw made her stop cold. At a large, ornate wooden table sat a group of teenagers. As in young, hormonal teenagers. Clare's age teenagers. And right at the edge of the table, cheeks flushed and eyes droopy from alcohol, sat Clare.

She was sitting next to a boy with mischievous eyes and messy, jet black hair, listening to him as he spoke. Teresa narrowed her eyes and watched them.

The boy flashed Clare a cocky smile and then said something that made Clare look down and shake her head, looking as if she was trying to hide her smile. The boy then tilted her head back to face him and pressed his lips roughly against hers as Clare reared back in surprise.

Teresa felt her muscles tense up as her fist clenched. She would crush the little brat. Squeeze him into dust.

 _Okay Teresa_ she told herself. _Deep breath now._ They were just kissing. And as protective as Teresa was of Clare, she knew it would happen sooner or later. Hell, for all Teresa knew Clare had kissed boys before. Now the alcohol was another thing, and Teresa was angry, _very_ angry, about that. But she could discuss that with Clare later. She made to turn and leave when something else caught her eye.

The boy's hand strayed from Clare's neck downward, and it slipped under her dress and came to rest between her legs.

Teresa exploded. She bounded forward, too fast for the human eye to see, and grabbed the boy by his neck. Slamming him into the wall, Teresa looked up at him and made her eyes glow yellow for a moment. She growled at the boy, her voice low. "If you ever do that again," she said. "I will tear you into pieces. I will kill you and I won't feel bad."

She dropped the boy and he recoiled away from her, holding his neck and coughing blood into his hand. "Now," she growled. "Get the fuck out of my sight before I change my mind about letting you live." The boy tucked his tail between his legs and ran.

Teresa's eyes returned to normal, and she turned to look at Clare, who had been gaping at her this whole time, unable to comprehend what had happened. Teresa grabbed Clare firmly by the wrist and literally dragged her to their house.

Once they were inside, Teresa rounded on Clare. "What the fuck was that?!" she exclaimed, livid. "What the _fuck_ was that? I expected better of you!"

Clare cast down her eyes, ashamed. She could feel the heat rush to her cheeks.

"First of all," Teresa continued. "You lied to me. I thought we were to be completely honest with each other. How many other times have you lied to me?" Clare kept her eyes downcast, and when she didn't give an answer, Teresa went on.

"Secondly, you're only fifteen and you should not be drinking alcohol like that. Do you hear me? That's dangerous, you could hurt yourself or worse. And lastly, that boy could have taken advantage of you, and don't think he wouldn't! He would readily do that, and I don't think you need me to explain to you how horrible that experience would be! 'Horrible' is an understatement, actually. It would kill both of us."

Clare did not say anything, but she could feel tears begin to well up in her eyes. Typically, Teresa immediately softened whenever she saw Clare cry, but she felt no sympathy towards her today. She kept her gaze stern and her mouth narrowed into a thin line.

"After remaining like that for a few seconds, Teresa spoke, her voice dangerously quiet. "Now go upstairs and go to bed and don't come out until the morning." Clare kept her eyes low as she sauntered up the stairs, unable to deal with the anger and betrayal that she knew was in Teresa's eyes.

In the morning, Teresa woke up and stared at the ceiling. She sighed. She did not believe her berating of Clare last night had been too harsh, but she couldn't find it in her heart to continue to be mad at her. This was how it always was, and Teresa doubted that it would ever change. Whenever Teresa tried to stay mad at Clare for an extended period of time, she would be too tempted to ruffle her hair when they spoke, or tickle her sides as they fooled around.

Teresa was broke out of her reverie by retching sounds coming from the bathroom. She bolted out of her room to find Clare leaning over the toilet, puking clear fluid into it. Teresa ran over and held her hair with one hand, wrapping her other arm around Clare and rubbing her back in soothing motions.

This continued for a few minutes, with Clare vomiting on and off. When she finally finished, she leaned back against the wall and said, "Teresa, would you mind getting me a glass of water?"

Teresa sighed. "Of course," she replied. When she came back with Clare's water, she gave it to her and sat beside her as she drank, keeping her company.

"Teresa," Clare began after a little while. Teresa looked at her. "Thank you, and…I'm sorry. Really sorry. It won't happen again."

Teresa looked down and rubbed her temples. "It's alright, Clare," she finally said. "It's just, when there's alcohol and boys involved, you can often get into difficult situations. Dangerous situations. I don't want to see you get hurt. Ever." Seeing Clare's tears, Teresa reached out and pulled Clare against her, cradling her and rocking back and forth. "I just want to protect you, because I love you, that's all. Sorry if that's hard for you to understand."

Clare sobbed into Teresa's chest as Teresa gently spoke to her, repeating "I love you" and "Shhh" just like she always had when Clare was younger and was crying over a scraped knee. Clare looked up and brushed the hair from her eyes. "I love you too, Teresa," she said.


	2. Chapter 2

This chapter is dedicated to Artzenin, who urged me to continue this story in the first place. I don't know what I am going to do for a third chapter, so please give some suggestions if you have any. Anyway, hope you enjoy!

Teresa stumbled into the table, rearing backward as her stomach slammed against the polished wood hard. She sat down heavily as the wind went out of her, and her head reeled as she held it in her hands, trying to compose herself. Claymores could filter alcohol out of their bodies at will if they so desired, but tonight Teresa had choose not to. She drank more than she could measure, and it had left her utterly intoxicated.

"Hey, lady, are you alright?" the bartender asked, his eyebrows knit together in confusion. "You need any help?"

"My daughter," Teresa muttered, her voice raspy. "Go get her."

"Lady, I don't know your daughter."

"The little wooden cabin around the corner. She'll be in there. Go get her, please."

Teresa covered her face with her hands and tried to take a deep breath as the bartender ran out the door. Her vision was so blurry that the room seemed to be spinning, and she could barely take one step without swaying. Her stomach was on fire; she felt as if she would throw up any second. She dry heaved and then coughed, struggling to control herself. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. It came away wet.

It wasn't long before the bartender came returned, Clare entering the bar only a few seconds behind him. Her face was scrunched up in concern. "Teresa?" she said warily.

Teresa tried to reach out to her before losing her balance and bringing her hang back down on the floor to regain it. "Clare?" she said. "Please." Teresa's elbows buckled as she began coughing.

Clare hastily rushed to Teresa's side and knelt down beside her. She drew Teresa's arm up around her and secured her own arm around Teresa's waist. "Okay, ready?" Clare asked. She slowly stood up, and Teresa struggled to gain her footing beside her. Once they were up, Teresa leaned severely on Clare, her eyelids weighing heavy upon her face. Clare turned towards the bartender, an apologetic look on her face. "I'm sorry about all this," she said. "Alright Teresa, let's get you out of here."

She led Teresa across the wooden floor and out the door, stepping into the warm air outside. "C'mon," Clare said encouragingly. "You got it." They managed to get about twenty feet before Teresa stumbled and fell over. Clare tugged on Teresa's hand. "Come _on_ , Teresa. We have to get you home."

"I'm fine here. Just leave me," Teresa replied, her words coming out slurred.

"You know I can't do that. Let's go, you can rest at home." She tugged on her hand again.

Teresa didn't budge. "I'm fiiiiiiiinnnne Clare," Teresa mumbled. "I'm just taking a nap."

"Teresa, I'm being serious. You know I can't carry you." Teresa was almost a full foot taller than Clare, and she was ninety pounds heavier besides. Two hundred pounds of solid muscle. Clare sighed and, having given up, flopped down next to Teresa on the floor. She stared up at the sky, stars shining bright against the navy darkness of space.

"Look," Teresa said softly, pointing sloppily up at a constellation. "There's the twin goddesses. That's _us,_ Clare. That's us."

Clare chuckled softly and shook her head. "Yeah, Teresa. You're right." Teresa turned her head to the side so that it bumped against Clare's. She closed her eyes, and Clare sighed. "You know, you're all calm and sweet right now, but you can really get violent sometimes."

Teresa reared back in mock annoyance. Her arms trembled as she pushed herself into a sitting position. "Like when?"

"Oh hmmm, let me think…like last week when you attacked that boy I was with."

Teresa snorted. "That kid was a little bitch. I'll beat his face in." She stuck her fist in the air. "No one messes with Teresa of the Faint Smile and lives!"

"My point exactly," Clare said under her breath. She stood up and pulled Teresa with her. "C'mon, let's go."

Teresa managed to walk with Clare's assistance, and they were home in a short while. Once inside, Clare helped Teresa into her room and got her settled in bed. Teresa was already half asleep, but she held onto Clare's hand tightly when she made to walk away. "Stay tonight? You haven't slept with me since you were little," she asked, her eyes connecting with her daughter's.

Clare smiled gently. "Of course," she said. She lifted the covers and slid in next to Teresa. Teresa wrapped her arms around Clare and buried her face in her hair. She struggled to form the words that she wanted to say. "You know, Clare, I really don't tell you often enough, but I love you. More than anything."

Clare chuckled. "Teresa, you tell me all the time. I love you too."

"No, but that's not all." Teresa abruptly pulled away from Clare and propped herself up on an elbow, gazing at Clare with glassy eyes. "That day we met, that was truly my lucky day. Everything I am, everything I do, it's because of you. You changed me; made me better. You're special, understand? You're everything, my whole world."

Clare felt herself wanting to cry and laugh at the same time. Teresa was emotional and very, very drunk, that much was clear. But she knew the words were heartfelt, and Teresa meant everything that she had said. Clare said, "I know, Teresa. I feel the same way. But you really need to get some sleep."

Teresa wiped her eyes with the back of her arm and collapsed back against the bed. She fell asleep within seconds of her head hitting the pillow.


End file.
